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“Matt,” I say his name softly. “I’m sorry to bother you.”
“Not a bother.” He smiles. “What can I do for you?”
I hold out the envelope that I hastily wrote his first name across. “This is a small token of my regret about what happened last night.”
The woman behind the reception desk perks a brow, but she doesn’t say a word.
He waves my hand away. “That’s not necessary. It was a misunderstanding. You thought I was my brother.”
I push the envelope at him. “Please accept it.”
He takes it from me, opening it quickly. Tugging out the paper, he reads it before he glances up at me. “Are you fucking serious?”
The woman behind the counter lets out a giggle.
“I noticed on Instagram that you’re a fan of Asher Foster, so I called in a favor.”
He shakes his head. “What the hell? This is too much.”
“Does it make up for my mistake last night?”
Laughter erupts from him. “I’d gladly take a glass of water in the face in exchange for this any day of the week.”
I glance over my shoulder when I hear another loud bark coming from the waiting room. “I think someone needs your attention. I’m going to take off.”
He taps the envelope and the note against his palm. “Thank you, Bianca. This was incredibly thoughtful of you.”
I nod in response and turn to leave.
I’m one step closer to the door of the clinic when it flies open and two small girls rush in. They dart around me, headed straight for Matt.
It’s all a blur.
I turn back around to see them jumping into his arms as he squats to greet them.
They hug him tightly. One screams his name, “Uncle Matty!”
When they pull back and glance in my direction, I stare at them until I hear a familiar voice behind me. “Bianca?”
As if I’m moving in slow motion, I turn to see Roman standing in the doorway of the clinic.
“We beat you to the door, Daddy,” a soft voice says from behind me.
Daddy.
Roman is a dad to beautiful identical twin girls.
Chapter 39
Roman
This can’t be happening, but it is.
I’m not dreaming. This isn’t a nightmare. It’s my reality. The woman I’m falling in love with is standing inches away from the loves of my life.
My daughters and Bianca are all staring at me.
Matt moves to stand. “Why don’t I take the girls to the break room?”
Dora, my adventurous little girl, jumps at the chance. She literally jumps up and down. The stuffed bunny in her hand bounces with her. “Buggy is sick. I brought him so you could make him feel better.”
Matt runs a hand over the stuffed animal’s ears. “Let’s take him into an exam room.” His gaze shifts to Riona, the vet assistant standing behind the reception desk. “Miss Myerson is going to help us.”
Riona nods. As she rounds the desk, she reaches for Georgie’s hand. We’ve been here enough for her to know that my youngest twin, the most sensitive one, needs extra encouragement when it comes to a visit to an exam room.
“We’ll be right back,” Matt says as he tosses me a look.
He senses I need a moment alone with Bianca. Hell, I need more than that to explain what she just witnessed, what she now knows. I’m a father. I’m a single dad raising two six-year-olds on my own.
I wait until my daughters are out of view before I approach Bianca.
She studies my face. “You’re a dad.”
I never had this conversation with a woman I’ve been seeing before. That’s because every short-term relationship I’ve had burned itself out before we got to the ‘ meet my kids ’ stage.
I made a promise to myself when my daughters were infants that I’d be selective about anyone I brought into their orbit. I didn’t want them falling in love with a woman I knew I’d never love, so a meet-up never happened.
Until now.
I wanted this. I didn’t realize it would happen like this.
“They’re so beautiful,” she whispers. “How old are they?”
“Six,” I answer quickly. “Dora will tell you that they’re six-and-a-half, but that’s not the case for another two months.”
“Dora,” she repeats her name.
“And Georgie,” I say softly.
Her bottom lip quivers. “Georgie.”
I nod. “I was planning on telling you tonight.”
Her eyes lock on mine, and I see something swimming in the blue depths. I can’t tell if it’s shock or sadness.
I have no idea if she sees herself with kids at some point or if the knowledge that I’m a dad is enough to drive her away.
I glance down at her shaking hands. “Bianca, I’m sorry.”
She reaches for one of my hands. “Please, no. Don’t say that.”
I hold onto her, cradling her hand in between mine. “I’ve always been very protective of them. It’s just the three of us.”
“Just you three?”
I don’t want to talk about this in the middle of a loud vet clinic, but I don’t have a goddamn choice because I’m scared that if she walks out of here now, I’ll never see her again. “Their mother isn’t… she’s not a part of their lives. I’ve been raising them alone since shortly after they were born. They’ve never met a woman I’ve been involved with, but this is different. I want you to know them. I really want them to know you, Bianca.”
